Embodiments of the present invention relate to a connection device for connecting pulling bodies to each other, and a pulling drive vehicle or a pulling carriage, on which the connection device is provided.
In various pulling operations, such as the pulling of an aircraft at an airport, the pulling of a carriage in a manufacturing line or the like, one pulling body and another pulling body are connected to each other. As a result, the another pulling body is pulled by the one pulling body.
The pulling bodies connected to each other in the above pulling operations are connected together by, for example, the following construction. The construction has one pulling body equipped with a connection device and the other pulling body equipped with a connection arm extending toward the connection device. The connection device has a connection portion into which the connection arm of the other pulling body is inserted, and a connection rod connecting the connection portion with the connection arm. The connection portion of the connection device and the connection arm are respectively equipped with a hole. The connection portion of the connection device and the connection arm are connected to each other by the connection arm. A connection device of this type is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2008-189064.
In the conventional connection device described above, the height allowing the insertion of the connection arm into the connection portion is restricted. Thus, when the height of the connection arm is changed in accordance with various conditions, it may be difficult to connect the two pulling bodies. Thus, there is a need for a connection device capable of securely connecting two pulling bodies even when the height of a connection arm extending from one pulling body toward the other pulling body is changed.